Zeepay empowers Africans with outbound remittance services to 200 destinations across the globe
Zeepay, a leading mobile money firm and a prominent player in Ghana’s financial landscape, has embarked on an ambitious mission to create a borderless Africa in terms of trade and payments. The company has recently enabled outbound remittance to wallet services from six African countries to over 200 destinations worldwide, while also working diligently to establish a seamless cross-border remittance corridor between Africa and the Caribbean, an initiative known as Afro-Carib remittance.
In a recent interview on CitiTV’s Point of View, Andy Takyi-Appiah, the Co-founder and CEO of Zeepay, shed light on the company’s strategic direction. Takyi-Appiah revealed that Zeepay’s outbound remittance services currently exclude its home country Ghana due to concerns raised by the Ghanaian industry regulator, the Bank of Ghana. The central bank is actively focused on maintaining stability for the Ghanaian cedi, particularly against the US dollar. As outbound remittance would involve settlements in dollars, potential challenges for the cedi arise, leading to the exclusion of Ghana from the initial rollout.
Takyi-Appiah acknowledged that Zeepay’s outbound remittance blueprint has undergone rigorous scrutiny within the Central Bank’s Regulatory Sandbox for the past two years. However, he expressed optimism that the innovative solution would soon be permitted to enter the market, contributing to the broader vision of a borderless Africa.
Despite the temporary setback in Ghana, Zeepay remains committed to its overarching goal of a borderless Africa. The company currently operates in 33 countries worldwide, with 25 of them located within the African continent. Zeepay holds a non-telco electronic money issuer license in Ghana, specializing in terminating remittances from around the world directly into mobile money wallets across Africa.
The decision to focus on creating a borderless Africa stems from the vast potential within the continent’s payment landscape. Takyi-Appiah highlighted the projected growth of the payments sector, estimating it to reach a value of US$40 billion by 2025, while cross-border payments, including trade, are expected to exceed US$200 billion within the next three years. Furthermore, Africa accounts for a significant portion of the world’s remittance flows, with approximately US$84 billion out of the total US$800 billion.
In Africa, mobile wallets dominate the payments market, with over 184 million active mobile wallets reported as of June 2022. Comparatively, card-based payments lag behind, with only around 50 million cards in circulation, out of which only 32 million are active. This preference for mobile wallets presents a substantial opportunity for players like Zeepay, which have established the necessary infrastructure for direct termination of remittances and payments into mobile money wallets. Additionally, fostering growth in the mobile wallets space can address challenges such as youth unemployment and contribute to overall economic development if regulatory frameworks support startup innovations in this sector.
Takyi-Appiah emphasized the varying stages of mobile wallet adoption across different African markets. While Ghana enjoys an advantage over its main competitor, Nigeria, in terms of mobile wallet adoption, Nigeria’s robust banking sector has sustained a strong reliance on card-based payments. The recent licensing of mobile wallets in Nigeria suggests that it may take up to seven years before significant uptake occurs.
The Zeepay CEO also highlighted the importance of the KINGS market (Kenya, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa) in Africa’s financial inclusion landscape. Ghana and Kenya stand out as leaders in this market, with Kenya’s M-Pesa service becoming a model for success. The widespread adoption of mobile money in Ghana was facilitated by the involvement of telecommunication companies, which integrated wallets with phone numbers, thereby expediting user adoption. Now, companies like Zeepay are leveraging this foundation to further scale the mobile wallets sector.
Good governance lies at the core of Zeepay’s operations. The company places great emphasis on establishing robust frameworks, processes, structures, and adherence to governance principles. Takyi-Appiah highlighted the importance of these factors, advising younger players in the industry to prioritize them to achieve both local and cross-border scalability. Zeepay’s commitment to good governance and service delivery has earned the company widespread acceptance and respect, positioning it as a trusted and reliable partner across the continent.
As Zeepay enters the next phase of its growth, the company aims to deploy its skilled workforce to offshore offices while investing in further training. Additionally, with the upcoming funding round, Zeepay plans to acquire high-skilled expertise to propel the company to new heights, realizing its vision for a borderless Africa.
Zeepay’s endeavors to facilitate outbound remittances, cross-border transfers, and a borderless Africa reflect the company’s determination to capitalize on the immense potential within the African payments landscape. By leveraging mobile wallets and embracing good governance practices, Zeepay aims to play a pivotal role in driving financial inclusion, economic growth, and regional integration throughout the continent.
